This fall off the bone, super tender lamb shanks is a perfect dinner option on a rainy weekend. I love this with my velvety mash potato recipe or if I’m serving it straight away, my creamy polenta. Watch the video below to learn how to make restaurant-style mash potatoes at home!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-b9s62fD6k

We went down the coast as part of my husband’s birthday gift to yours truly, and it was our first time there together. It was enjoyable, relaxing and the beaches are so beautiful. I only had one problem, every time I travel anywhere, I try to find inspiration for my next posts, and truth be told, I did not have a eureka moment this trip. However, because it’s been rainy in Sydney, I thought I’d share the recipe for one of my favorite cold weather dishes. It’s relatively easy to make, and just so comforting. You can use your slow cooker if you have one and that makes this recipe a convenient midweek dinner too! So nothing lost in the end, because I still found inspiration on what to post today!

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Give this recipe a try and let me know what you think in the comments below! Don’t forget to snap and tag @mrs.fancypants.recipes so I can see your photos on social media. Enjoy your weekend!

 

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 15 Mins Cook Time: 3 Hr Total Time: 3 Hr 15 Mins

Braised Lamb Shanks

Serves 4

Ingredients

Instructions

0/7 Instructions
  • Preheat oven to 170C. Trim lamb shanks of excess fat, pat dry then season with salt and pepper.
  • Heat oil in a pan. Brown shanks on all sides then place in a baking dish big enough to fit all 4 shanks and deep enough to hold 2 litres of liquid.
  • In the same pan, sauté vegetables until soft. Add red wine, bring to the boil then reduce red wine to half. Add stock, bring to the boil then pour liquid into the baking dish.
  • Cover tightly with foil and braise for 2 1/2 - 3 hours or until the meat is very tender that it falls off the bone.
  • When the meat is ready, take the meat out of the dish and cover with foil. To make the sauce, take the herbs out of the liquid (if there are big bits) then blend the liquid until smooth, be careful when blending hot liquids.
  • If you don't want to blend the liquid, simple strain off the vegetables and reduce the liquid in a sauce pot until your desired consistency. Please note this will result to less sauce.
  • Serve lamb shanks with mash potato or polenta and pour sauce on top.

Notes

  1. Feel free to cook the shanks in your slow cooker following manufacturer's instructions.
  2. Click here for my velvety mash potato recipe.

I have been craving for chocolate baked goods lately. Like my flourless chocolate cake, which I haven’t uploaded here yet and my gooey brownies. I’ve also been meaning to revisit my double chocolate muffin recipe and make it the ultimate chocoholic’s breakfast treat. This little concoction is so that I can have an indulgent chocolate-y start to my day without raising anybody’s eyebrow, especially my husband’s. Haha. You see, my husband gives me that judgemental look each time I reach for cake for breakfast and claims “that’s not breakfast” but if I make a super chocolate-y muffin, then it’s still breakfast, so he can’t protest anymore! That was my motivation in making this sinful chocolate-y muffin, I keep telling myself, if it’s a muffin, it counts as breakfast.

So I amped up the chocolate and used buttermilk instead of milk. Which makes this very moist inside. I do think that anything with cocoa powder dries up quicker than those without, so I increased the liquid in this recipe as well. I use full fat everything when I bake, because fat gives a more moist end result. I also opted for brown sugar because again, moisture.

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Now I can’t really finish a whole cafe-style muffin, but they look gorgeous, and I’m sure there are people who’d love to make these at home, therefore I tested this recipe three ways multiple times and everything came out consistent. So this recipe will yield 4 cafe style muffins, 6 standard muffins and 12 small (cupcake size, you’ll see the photos) muffins.

Let’s talk about what chocolate to use. Make sure you use dutch processed cocoa powder. Not only does it give your muffins a darker, better colour, it also doesn’t have a metallic aftertaste. With the chopped chocolate, you can use any good quality chocolate. I tested my recipe with Valrhona and Callebaut, with the same result, but you can use whatever is available to you. I do find that milk chocolate is really good for this with a sprinkling of dark and white chocolate. Follow the chopped chocolate ratio and you won’t regret it. Oh and if you see some photos with white chocolate drizzling, the drizzling was just me getting carried away, it’s not actually in the recipe!

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Now moving on to the correct way to measure your ingredients. If you don’t have a scale, I also provide an approximate conversion to cups, and I do test it. However, measuring flour and cocoa powder this way often results to drier goods, because the baker doesn’t measure correctly. When I use cups and spoons, I sift the flour and cocoa powder prior to measuring then spoon and level. Similarly, brown butter tends to be a problem when it comes to measurement as well. When the recipe calls for 100g of brown butter, it means, you measure the brown butter after it has browned and not when you put butter in the pot. These tips will prevent a dry chocolate muffin.

Feel free to try my breakfast of champion chocoholics and let me know how you liked it in the comments below or tag me on IG when you post photos!

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 10 Mins Cook Time: 35 Mins Total Time: 45 Mins

Ultimate Chocolate Muffins

Makes 4 cafe style, 6 standard, 12 small

Ingredients

Instructions

0/3 Instructions
  • Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Line muffin tin with paper cases.
  • In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients. In a separate bowl mix wet ingredients until smooth. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and stir in wet ingredients just until combined. DO NOT OVER MIX.
  • Fold in the chocolate chips into the batter. DO NOT OVER MIX. Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake for 25-30 minutes depending on which size you're making or until toothpick comes out clean. See notes.

Notes

  1. When using brown butter, measure the brown butter after it has browned not before.
  2. Here are the baking times in my oven:
    • 4 cafe style muffins - 35 minutes
    • 6 standard muffins - 30 minutes
    • 12 small muffins - 23-25 minutes

 

I think every Filipino family has their own version of every Filipino dish. This is then passed down to offsprings and so on. I say this a lot because it’s true, food has a very big role in Filipino culture. We love to eat and we show our love through food, and the best way for us to bond is by sharing a meal.

Growing up, my mom was never very experimental with her cooking, but she had a handful of specialties. If she reads this, she’d probably say that she taught me how to cook, and to be fair, she taught me her staple dishes. Like her spaghetti, macaroni salad, potato salad and caldereta. I think this is also so that I can take over the cooking, but I moved to Macau, then to Sydney, so she’s still the one that cooks at home until now.

So the recipe below is my mom’s caldereta with coconut milk. Caldereta is a spicy beef stew, normally made with liver spread (liver pate), but this version doesn’t use that. My mom initially taught me to make caldereta and finish it with grated tasty cheese and that was the version that I grew up eating more, then she started cooking this version more, which uses coconut milk to finish the dish. My husband loves the coconut milk version, so that’s what I cook here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CF1jRNMBEgI/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Also, the protein used varies between goat and beef in the provinces, but I never really tried goat, and I always make this with beef. I should try using lamb one day, then I’ll let you know how it fares. That could be my Aussie version of a caldereta!

Anyway, I’ve tweaked my mom’s version by sealing the beef first before braising it so the beef doesn’t lose it’s flavour. I also put mirepoix in the braise and use beef stock, all to give the dish ample flavour. I strain the mirepoix off before adding the rest of the vegetables, so there won’t be the odd mushy carrot in there. This dish takes some time to cook, but very well worth it. I like cooking this in a dutch oven like the ones below, these are perfect for slow cooking. If you don’t have one, don’t worry, if you watch the video, I used a normal deep and wide sauce pan which I’m sure everyone has. I then serve it with plain rice, but if you really like coconut, my recipe for fluffy coconut rice can be found here.

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Now, if you’re busy and you don’t have time to wait hours at home, you can make this dish using a slow-cooker. They are very convenient, and have great features like setting the cooking time and keeping the food warm, so it’s ready when you get home. Here are some options, the one on the left is pretty basic, while the one on the right has all the bells & whistles.

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So I hope you try this hearty recipe. If you’re not Filipino, and not used to the flavours this is a good introductory dish to accustom your palate to what Filipino food is like. The cuisine is very diverse, ranging from light salads and raw fish cooked in vinegar, to hearty stews like this one. We also use a lot of strong flavours and some dishes have fairly strong aromas, so this dish is a good entry point because it has a tomato and beef stock base.

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 20 Mins Cook Time: 1 Hr 30 Mins Total Time: 1 Hr 50 Mins

My Mom’s Caldereta

(Filipino Beef Stew)

Serves 6

Ingredients

Instructions

0/3 Instructions
  • Season beef. Heat oil in a large, deep, wide pan. Brown beef on all sides, take out of the pan. Set aside.
  • In the same pan, sauté onion, 1 carrot & celery until caramelised. If there is too much oil in the pain, drain this off to prevent your sauce becoming too oily. Pour the stock into the pan and using a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan. Put the beef back into the pan, bring to the boil then slow down to a simmer. Partially cover with a lid so the liquid doesn't evaporate too quickly, and cook until beef is tender (at least 1 hour, if you use good quality beef). Skim all the impurities and fat that come up to the surface frequently.
  • When beef is ready, strain the liquid into a container big enough to hold it then discard the vegetables. Put the beef and the liquid back into the pan and then stir in tomato paste. Add the rest of the carrots and potatoes, then simmer until the vegetables are cooked. Add the olives and chili then stir in the coconut milk. Season to taste. Serve with steamed rice.

Notes

  1. This recipe is freezer-friendly. To freeze: portion the stew into airtight containers, cool down completely with no lid, place the lid on then freeze. Keeps up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before heating up, heat up gently, or the coconut milk might split.

 

I never considered sharing my brownie recipe earlier because I thought it’s one of those made-to-your-preference kind of food. That’s why, if you google “best brownie recipe” so many results come up, because bakers have their own brownie recipe cut-out to their taste. Gooey or cake-y, dark chocolate or milk chocolate, melted chocolate or cocoa powder, frosting or no frosting, and the list goes on. Different ratios, resulting to different textures and density. So I am proceeding with caution. I am not claiming that these are the best brownies ever, but these are definitely not for the faint-hearted. It’s a chocolate-lovers dream, every bite is an indulgence, so I only make this maybe twice a year and make sure I share the love!

Anyway, I made this today because I wanted to make a dairy-free & gluten-free version but I want them to taste the same. To begin my experiment, I needed a control and a variable which means I need to make both versions for my blind taste-test. I was scared of suffering from brownie overload so I divided the normal version into nuts, plain (because my husband has a nut allergy) and dulce de leche (obviously not dairy-free) and the DF/GF version into nuts and plain.

I use dark chocolate, because if you read the recipe, you will notice how much sugar is in it. Almost half a kilo for a batch! To balance out the sweetness, I use 70% dark chocolate and to get that dark colour, I make sure I use dutch processed cocoa powder.

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Also, my recipe is easy, you don’t need a mixer and no melting of chocolate involved. Just need 2 bowls and a whisk to make the batter. Make sure everything is room temperature for easy mixing, especially since you’re not using a mixer.

I use the brownie pan on the left below, but I’ve seen new pans that divide the brownies equally, or have markers to guide you when you portion, like the one on the right. I’ve never tried any pf the new ones though, so if you have, please let me know if they’re good and which brand you use in the comments below.

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Like I mentioned, these are very rich brownies, so cut them on the small side. I did end up with a successful dairy-free and gluten-free version that you can find here, if you’re interested. And if you do make the recipe, feel free to leave a comment below and to tag me on the photos! I love seeing what you make and what recipes you like.

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 20 Mins Cook Time: 30 Mins Total Time: 50 Mins

Rich & Gooey Brownies

Makes 18 slices

Ingredients

Instructions

0/5 Instructions
  • Preheat oven to 180C no fan or 160C with fan. Grease & line a 33 x 23 x 5 cm (9 x 13 x 2 in) with baking paper.
  • In a medium bowl, sift flour, cocoa and salt together. Set aside. In a large bowl whisk together sugars, butter and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each time.
  • Fold in flour mixture until you only see a few flour streaks. Fold in 2/3 of the chocolate and half the nuts until everything is just combined. Do not overmix.
  • Pour into prepared pan. Tap on the bench once to spread the batter. Sprinkle the rest of chocolate and nuts on top. Bake on the middle shelf for 28 minutes for super gooey brownies. Check around 25 minutes just in case your oven is too hot and the brownies are done. The brownie should form a shiny crust on top and still feels soft in the centre.
  • If you like your brownies more firm and set, add 5 minute increments until a total of 35 minutes baking time only. The brownies will get firmer as they cool down. Cool down completely then cut with a hot, sharp knife into 18 squares. Wipe the knife clean after each stroke for sharp edges.

Notes

  • If you're feeling a little adventurous like me, drop a few teaspoons of dulce de leche in the batter before putting in the oven then sprinkle with some flake salt when you take it out.

 

I never really tried making my recipes gluten-free and dairy-free, but for some reason I woke up today and thought I should try making my brownie gluten-free & dairy-free. What I didn’t expect was it to be a straight substitution. I wanted to use almond meal & gluten-free flour but thought almond meal may be hard to find in some countries, plus it’s pretty expensive and brownies are not cheap to make as it is. Have you seen how much butter and chocolate is needed? So I stuck with GF flour. Then I used coconut oil, and it was the bomb, so so good! But then again, I wanted it to taste like my usual brownies, so I then tried Nuttelex Buttery which is a butter substitute, and it worked!!!

By this stage, I was over the moon, because I don’t know about you, but when I test recipes, they’re not usually a raging success on the first go, moreso two gos in a row! You can imagine my excitement, right? Probably not, but I’m telling you, it might have been the sugar rush from all the brownie testing, but I was extremely delighted.

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So, yes, if you love coconut, by all means, use coconut oil. A good thing to note, most good quality dark baking chocolate is dairy-free. Also, cocoa butter is a non-dairy product, as much as a lot of people mistake it to be so. I of course use my favorite Valrhona Guanaja 70% because the bitterness balances the sweetness of the batter. You can use any chocolate brand that you want, just check that it’s dairy-free. If you want it to be extra and don’t mind cost, use half almond meal and half GF flour. I have to mention that the GF version takes longer to bake, though. So start checking around 28 minutes instead of 25.

I then carried out my blind taste-test, and not one of my audience thought they were eating a GF/DF version of a brownie! Success!!! Please try this recipe and my gooey brownies let me know if you agree with me or not. I am positive this tastes like a regular brownie, and it’s backed by my own study. LOL. Have fun baking! Don’t forget to comment below and tag me on your baking photos!

 
Yields: 1 Serving Difficulty: Easy

Dairy-free & Gluten-free Brownies

Makes 18 slices

Ingredients

0/9 Ingredients

Instructions

0/5 Instructions
  • Preheat oven to 180C no fan or 160C with fan. Grease & line a 33 x 23 x 5 cm (9 x 13 x 2 in) with baking paper.
  • In a medium bowl, sift flour, cocoa and salt together. Set aside. In a large bowl whisk together sugars, nuttelex and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each time.
  • Fold in flour mixture until you only see a few flour streaks. Fold in 2/3 of the chocolate and half the nuts until everything is just combined. Do not overmix.
  • Pour into prepared pan. Tap on the bench once to spread the batter. Sprinkle the rest of chocolate and nuts on top. Bake on the middle shelf for 30 minutes for super gooey brownies. Check around 28 minutes just in case your oven is too hot and the brownies are done. The brownie should form a shiny crust on top and still feels soft in the centre.
  • If you like your brownies firmer and more set, add 5 minute increments until set. Remember the brownies will get firmer as they cool down. Cool down completely then cut with a hot, sharp knife into 18 squares. Wipe the knife clean after each stroke for sharp edges.

Notes

  • Nuttelex Buttery is actually margarine but I use this brand because the taste is not like other margarines. You can also opt for coconut oil and other butter substitutes.
  • Pure cocoa powder (dutch processed or not) should be gluten-free
  • Make sure the 70% chocolate is dairy-free, I used Valrhona Guanaja 70% but there are plenty of good quality baking chocolate that are dairy-free too, like Ghirardelli & Callebaut.

 

My husband loves this meal. It’s one of his favourite meals, and I love it because it’s simple, easy and quick to make but super delicious. It looks like a lot, but once you actually start cooking it, it’s so easy.

The teriyaki sauce can be used for other things as well, like chicken or tofu. My original teriyaki sauce had more cornflour in it but I like it with less because it doesn’t look gunky. Also, make sure you add the cornflour to the cold mix and keep whisking until the sauce thickens. Then you won’t have a gunky, lumpy sauce.

The coconut rice is yummy and I normally don’t use stock powder, but a little bit in this just gives it the additional flavour it needs. At first I was worried that the milk would split, but it turned out so well. I might try this with coconut water next time and see what happens. Oh and I found pandan leaf at Harris Farm the other day and the fragrance brought me home! But if it’s too hard to find, you can skip the leaf altogether.

This meal can be ready in 30 minutes, which is terrific for weeknight dinners. But you can also serve it to guests and use a whole side of salmon. If you’re looking for something tasty and no-fuss, give this a try and let me know how you rate it.

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 5 Mins Cook Time: 5 Mins Total Time: 10 Mins

Teriyaki Salmon

with Asian greens & Coconut rice

Serves 4

Ingredients

    For the Teriyaki sauce
    • For the Salmon
    • For the greens
    • For the Coconut rice:
    • To serve: (optional)

Instructions

0/13 Instructions
    For the coconut rice:
  • Rinse the rice until the water runs clear. Do not skip this step. Drain.
  • Mix all the ingredients in a sauce pot except the panda leaf (if using), crush then knot the pandas leaf to release the flavour and add to the rice. Bring to the boil uncovered. Stir and lower the flame to low. Cover with lid and cook for 15 more minutes on low. Check the rice, and if it needs more cooking, add 5 more minutes. Keep warm.
    • For sauce:
  • In a small sauce pot whisk together all ingredients except the honey and lime juice.
  • Bring to the boil while constantly whisking to prevent the cornflour from making your sauce lumpy. Add the lime juice and pepper to taste.
  • If you need a little bit more sweetness, add the tablespoon of honey or brown sugar if you don’t have honey. Keep warm.
    • Cooking salmon on the barbecue:
  • Bring a large pot of water to the boil, enough to fit all the asian greens. Add the salt. Meanwhile preheat your bbq to 200C with the flat plate on. If you don't have a barbecue, use the oven method.
  • Pat the skin of the salmon dry and drizzle with oil and season with a pinch of salt. Place salmon skin side touching the flat plate. Close the bbq hood and wait until the temp goes back to 200C, then turn down to 150C. Cook for 20 minutes, check that the salmon is just done. Carefully transfer to a tray and cover with foil to keep warm.
    • Cooking salmon in the oven:
  • Bring a large pot of water to the boil, enough to fit all the asian greens. Add the salt. Meanwhile preheat your oven to 150C.
  • Heat oil in a pan big enough to fit the salmon. Pat the skin of the salmon dry and season with a pinch of salt. When the oil is smoking hot, place the salmon skin side down and cook until the skin is crispy, about 5 minutes on med-high flame.
  • Transfer to the oven and cook for 15 minutes or until the salmon is cooked to your liking. Take out and cover with foil to keep warm.
    • Blanch Asian greens:
  • While the salmon is cooking, trim the Asian greens and rinse. When the water boils, blanch the greens for 1 minute then drain.
    • To serve:
  • Toss Asian greens in 3 tbsp of sauce. Place on serving platter covering the surface area. Place salmon on top of greens then glaze with sauce. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top of salmon and fried shallots on the greens.
  • Serve with rice topped with picked coriander and extra sauce.

 

These cupcakes are sooooo fluffy minions would definitely go bananas! So here’s the thing… I know some people think that if you divide a banana bread recipe into a cupcake pan and frost them you can get away with calling them banana cupcakes, but cupcakes are meant to have the texture of a cake not a quick bread. So if bananas bread is too dense for your taste, but you want to use your overripe bananas for baking, this is a great recipe for you. I like to top these babies with whipped dark chocolate ganache (yum!) or dulce de leche buttercream (double yum!)

So today, you’re getting two frosting recipes with these cupcakes! They are absolutely delicious with both and always a crowd favourite. Both frosting recipes only need a few ingredients and are fairly easy to make. They are not too sweet and have a light texture from whipping. For the dulce de leche, you can use store bought dulce de leche or Carnation Top ‘n Fill. Make sure you use good quality chocolate for the whipped ganache, it makes all the difference.

I get a lot of questions about stand mixers, and these are my recommendations. It comes with a caveat though, I only recommend you get one if you bake a lot because they are not cheap. Otherwise, a hand mixer is the more practical option.

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When you make the batter for the cupcakes, if it looks a little curdled after you add the sour cream, it’s fine the flour mixture should bring it together. Now what are you waiting for? Get your whisks and bowls out and start baking! But seriously, if you try this recipe, let me know what you think in the comments below! I love hearing your feedback.

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 20 Mins Cook Time: 18 Mins Total Time: 38 Mins

Fluffy Banana Cupcakes

Makes 15 cupcakes

Ingredients

    For the cupcake batter
    • For the whipped ganache
    • For the dulce de leche buttercream

Instructions

0/10 Instructions
  • If you're making your own dulce de leche, peel the labels off the cans of condensed milk, place it in a pot of water making sure it's submerged then simmer for 1.5 hours with a lid on. Leave in the pot and cool to room temperature.
  • Preheat oven to 175C no fan and line cupcake pans with 15 cupcake liners.
  • In a medium bowl, sift dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl mash bananas then mix with sour cream.
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer, with a paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time fully incorporating after each addition. Add vanilla.
  • Turn off stand mixer and with a rubber spatula fold in dry and wet ingredients alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Fully incorporating after each addition.
  • Scoop a (regular not measuring) tablespoon into each cupcake liners or if you have a scale, about 55g each. Bake for 15 minutes turning halfway or until skewer inserted comes out clean. Cool down completely before frosting. Garnish with one banana chip after frosting.
    • For dulce de leche buttercream
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip the butter until light and fluffy. Add the dulce de leche and whisk until smooth.
    • For the whipped ganache
  • Place the chocolate in the bowl of your stand mixer. In a sauce pan, bring cream to the boil then our on top of the chocolate making sure the chocolate is submerged. Let sit for 5 minutes.
  • With the paddle attachment on low-medium speed, mix the chocolate and cream just until incorporated. Cool down until it's the consistency of peanut butter.
  • With the whisk attachment, whisk the ganache on high until fluffy.

As we are now moving on to warmer months in Australia, I am slowly transitioning my cooking from roasted and braised to grilled and tossed. However, there is the few weeks in between when I can still enjoy winter produce and use it in a fresh and crunchy dish like this prawn and fennel salad.

 

Fennel has a beautiful aniseed flavour and is delicious both roasted and shaved. I use lemon confit slices to give this a citrus punch and chopped smoked almonds for that added crunch. You can serve this with grilled fish like salmon or barramundi and it would still be beautiful, but my favourite is to serve it as an entree with some prawns. I haven’t put the smoked almonds on this because my husband is allergic, hence, I always have it on the side.

A great way to shave the fennel is by using a mandoline slicer. These come very sharp, so I suggest being careful and using the guard. Even professionals occasionally cut themselves while using these. They’re great because they give you sharp, even, paper thin slices then you can put the slices in ice water and they curl up like the ones in my photos. Most of them come with multiple blade options for julienne slicing, shaving vegetable for slaw and salad, slicing fries, etc. The one on the left below is the one I use, but the one on the right is a good household brand and would do the job at home. This can change the way you present food when you have guests, so give it a try!

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Make this lovely salad at home, and when you do, don’t forget to let me know what you liked (or didn’t like) about it! I’d be excited to see your photos too, so don’t be shy and connect with me on Instagram or Facebook!

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 20 Mins Cook Time: 45 Mins Total Time: 1 Hr 5 Mins

Prawn & Fennel Salad

Serves 4

Ingredients

Instructions

0/5 Instructions
  • Pre-heat oven to 180C. Wash fennel and take off the first layer. Trim the fronds and reserve.
  • Cut each fennel into quarters from the top. Reserve 1 quarter for shaving, then cut the rest into halves with the core of the fennel keeping the piece together. Arrange on a baking tray, brush with olive oil and roast until soft and caramelised, about 20-30 minutes. Cool down.
  • In the meantime, slice lemon into very thin rounds(you can use a slicer if you have one) and bring sugar, water and vinegar to the boil. Add lemon, cover and let sit until completely cold and lemon soft. Drain and reserve liquid.
  • Peel and rinse prawns. Set aside. Then with a slicer or a knife, slice the fennel very thinly like paper and put into ice water to crisp up.
  • To serve, drain shaved fennel and place in a large bowl. Add the rest of ingredients and use reserved liquid from the lemon as dressing, to taste. Season with salt then sprinkle chopped almonds if using.

What is a cherry ripe you say??? Well, you see, I also didn’t know until I moved to Australia. Cherry ripe is one of Cadbury’s delicious chocolate bars and on the Cadbury website, Cherry ripe is described as: “The ripe juicy cherries and moist coconut smothered in rich Old Gold dark chocolate ensures a unique taste experience. As Australia’s oldest chocolate bar, Cherry Ripe offers an indulgent and rich treat. Available in 52g, 80g and a 180g sharepack, Cherry Ripe is the only bar to offer you the ‘big cherry taste’.” This is what it looks like.

So yes, coconut, cherries and dark chocolate. That’s the winning combination that we’re using for today’s recipe. Why? Because I saw fresh imported cherries in the supermarket (it’s winter in Sydney and definitely not cherry season) and I got inspired. Also, I’m sure for those of you following me on social media, you’ve seen how many cookies I’ve been baking, so I thought I’d switch it up today with a no-bake recipe. Yes!!! You read it right. You won’t need your oven, and you won’t even need your mixer. And all this scrumptiousness can be done in under 2 hours, then it’s ready to serve. Isn’t it great?

I used Valrhona Guanaja 70% for this tart. It’s seriously my favourite chocolate for baking. Unlike other dark chocolates that has this amount of cocoa solids, Guanaja 70% is velvety and not overly bitter. It really is a premium product, however, I understand Valrhona is not as affordable as other baking chocolate, so any good quality chocolate would do, like the ones below.

Click on the photos to shop for the products. Most products ship internationally.

Mrs.Fancypants earns a small commission from affiliate links, when you buy the products above. If you’re in Australia, feel free to check the availability on advertised sites.

 

 

Now, for those of you who are keen to try this tart, but can’t make it, I will ship this tart Australia-wide soon! So watch my social or sign up for email updates so you don’t miss out!!! Nevertheless, however you want to enjoy this tart, be it by making it or ordering, I’m keen to know your thoughts! It’s pretty straightforwards but let me know if you have any question! Happy eating!!!

 
Difficulty: Easy Prep Time: 30 Mins Total Time: 30 Mins

Cherry Ripe Tart

Makes 1 x 9 inch tart

Ingredients

    For the crust
    • For the filling:
    • For the chocolate ganache

Instructions

0/6 Instructions
  • Make the crust by mixing the melted butter and crushed Oreos until the mix resembles wet sand. Then press the crumbs firmly on the sides and bottom of a 9-inch pie plate. Put in the freezer or fridge to set.
  • Make the filling by placing the cherry glaze in a food processor and chopping. You can try doing this by hand but it's sticky. Then in a medium bowl, mix condensed milk, coconut and chopped cherry glaze. Set aside until needed.
  • Take the crust out and spread the filling from step 2 evenly. Cover the coconut layer with a layer of the halved fresh/frozen cherries, press down so they don't float when you pour the ganache later. Put in the fridge until needed.
  • Make the ganache: Place chocolate and butter in a medium bowl. Then in a small pot, bring cream and glucose to the boil. Pour onto the chocolate bowl and let sit for 5 minutes then stir with a spatula until smooth.
  • Take the pie out of the fridge and pour the chocolate ganache on top, completely covering the layer of cherries. Place in the fridge to set for 1 hour before serving.
  • If using optional toppings, place the toppings decoratively on top then serve. Optional: I made this tart because there were imported cherries available, so I used fresh cherries to decorate it on top and sprinkled some more desiccated coconut to fill the gaps. If you don't have fresh cherries available, don't worry about it, just serve the tart as is, or with a light sprinkling of cocoa powder.

My husband recently celebrated his birthday, and despite going to the gym everyday and being fit, he has a massive sweet tooth. So every year I bake him a cake (or maybe 2 depending on how many parties we’re having) and this year, he requested that the cake has ube (pronounced oo-beh). It’s his favourite Filipino food next to longganisa and my mom’s Filipino spaghetti.

What is ube? Ube is classified as a tuber, same as sweet potato, potato, yam, taro, etc. Specifically, ube is a variety of purple yam native to the Philippines. It has a vibrant purple colour and is a favourite ingredient by Filipinos to use in desserts. In the last decade, ube has gained popularity in the western palette as well, because of it’s mild and nutty flavour. Personally, I feel like the Europeans would recognise the flavour because it’s a little bit similar to chestnuts, but a different texture.

How to use ube? It’s very versatile, much like the sweet potatoes, yams and pumpkins in America during Thanksgiving, we can use it in cakes, jams, pies, ice cream, you name it, and there is probably an ube flavoured version of it. You can find my ube recipe’s here. Or if you want to try this ube cake and you’re in Sydney, you can order it below:

 

Going back to the cake, the base is a coconut and purple yam chiffon cake with stabilised whipped cream frosting and coconut and ube filling. The cream will set and hold for 2-3 days, and in my experience, this cake gets eaten much faster than that period. I used ube flavour and added sweetened ube to give it a good flavour kick, but the sweetened ube is optional. This cake is not sickly sweet, so it’s popular to those who are looking after their sugar intake. The cake is also very light because it’s a chiffon, so great for those who don’t like rich desserts.

So now you can scroll down and find the full recipe and my notes. Chiffon cake is fairly straight forward to make, and if you follow the instructions, it would be a breeze for you. I would love to know if you made this and how you liked it, so please connect with me on Instagram, and use #mrsfancypants so I can see your baked goodies!!!

I get a lot of questions about stand mixers, and these are my recommendations. It comes with a caveat though, I only recommend you get one if you bake a lot because they are not cheap. Otherwise, a hand mixer is the more practical option.

Click on the photos to shop for the products. Most products ship internationally.

Mrs.Fancypants earns a small commission from affiliate links, when you buy the products above. If you’re in Australia, feel free to check the availability on advertised sites.

 
Difficulty: Difficult Prep Time: 15 Mins Cook Time: 35 Mins Total Time: 50 Mins

Sweetened Coconut and Purple Yam Cake

Makes a 2 layer 8-inch cake

Ingredients

    For the chiffon cake
    • For the filling, see notes
    • For the whipped cream frosting

Instructions

0/12 Instructions
    Make the cake
  • Line the bottom of 2 8-inch cake tins with baking paper. Do not grease the sides of the tin. Preheat oven to 170C. In a bowl, whisk egg yolks, coconut oil, ube flavouring, ube puree (if using) and milk until smooth. Set aside.
  • In a big bowl, sift together flour, corn flour, half of the sugar and baking powder.
  • In the bowl of your stand mixer, sprinkle cream of tartar on top of egg whites then start to whisk on medium until frothy.
  • Gradually add sugar, then keep whisking on medium speed until all the sugar is dissolved and the meringue is glossy.
  • Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and pour the egg yolk mixture. Mix until incorporated then fold in 1/3 of the meringue. Fold until the mixture is smooth. Do this three times until the meringue is finished.
  • Divide equally between the 2 cake tins then bake at 170C for 30-35 minutes. Do not open the oven while cake is baking.
  • The cake is done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Invert the tins and cool upside down on a cooling rack.
    • Make the filling and frosting
  • While the cake is cooling, make the filling. Mix the ube and condensed milk until the colour is even then add the desiccated coconut. Set aside.
  • Now make the whipped cream frosting. Put the water in a small bowl then sprinkle the gelatine on top, mix just until all the granules are wet. Set aside for 5 minutes.
  • Heat 100 ml of cream then mix the gelatine in until it dissolves. No need to boil the cream you just need to dissolve the gelatin. Cool down to room temperature before use. Whisk the rest of the cream and sugar until soft peak then slowly add the cream with gelatine. Whisk until stiff then keep in the fridge until needed.
    • Assembly
  • When the cake is cooled down completely, trim the tops if domed. Put a dollop of cream on the cake plate then put one layer of cake trimmed side down. Spread a good layer of frosting on top of the cake and even it out. Top with half the filling then top with the 2nd cake trimmed side down.
  • Now spread a thin layer of frosting all over the cake and even it out, then chill for at least 45 minutes. The first layer of frosting would've set at this stage and will hold the crumbs in place so your cake will be crumb free when it's finished. Now use the rest of the frosting to cover the cake then make rosettes around the top. Fill the centre with the rest of the filling. Chill until ready to serve.

Notes

  1. You can use ube powder instead of ube flavouring. The ratio is 1:1.
  2. If coconut oil is not handy, use any neutral flavoured oil but the cake will not have any coconut flavour.
  3. If you do not want to make the filling. You can substitute  sweetened coconut sport (macapuno). Drain the syrup and mix the coconut sport with ube flavouring, no need to add condensed milk.
  4. Tips for success: This is overwhelming to make by itself for first timeEd, so focus on making this cake and don’t skip steps. A cake takes a few hours to completely cool down, so either make it a day ahead or in the morning.

Tags

#cake  #ube